1999 vs 2499 MBPRO

I bought the 1999 version and I cant understand why people would shell out an EXTRA 500 for literally 200mhz, 128mb more ram on the 8600 GT and 40 gigs more HD....to me thats like 100 bucks more right?

My decision is made, but wanted to share my thoughts!

 

That extra 128MB of video RAM makes a big difference if you're playing a game (WoW, not so much, but in BootCamp+Windows), considering the 1440x900 screen is pretty high-res. Folks who don't want very good gaming performance would get the base model or a MacBook (even there you have to pay extra for a DVD writer, lol).

 

I know too much about PC gaming to believe that, but I hear why you may believe it! Theres much more than RAM to video cards these days....and the 8600 GT is the SAME except for the RAM.'

Its a rip....maybe 1999 and 2299....NOT 2500

 

Yeah, it is a rip, but what kind of games are you playing? AA/AF filtering really kills performance on 128MB cards.

 

Hey guys this is the place that charges insane amount for RAM upgrades. It's Apple.

None of their pricing makes sense

 

its an expensive upgrade, but the 8600m gt is considerably faster with the extra 128 megs of ram. it *apparently* utilizes up to about 256 megs of ram very well

afaik, the 128 meg gddr3 version performs similarly to the 256 meg ddr2 version.

 

It's even worse here in Canada. The two models are $2199 and $2799. And while the 2199 model can be had readily for 1999, not so for the higher end one, essentially making the difference a whopping $800! Definitely not worth it doesn't matter how much you game IMO. With the difference you can get a PS3, 5 games, 5 bluray movies and enough left over for a nice dinner for two...

 

for that price you could also get a ps3 and a 20" or so hdtv (if you feel like that is holding you back)

 

Not just Apple .

But yeah...for those that really want it, its money well spent. Personally, I do not need that extra power, so if I got a MBP I'd just get the base model .

 

Gosh I had this fight with myself over and over. Get which one? I got the faster one. Sure it's $500, but I don't even think about it now. I game quite well on it (when I do game). Ironically, I removed the 160GB drive soon after buying the system and put in my own 200GB 7200rpm drive, so the hard drive wasn't even a factor in the cost for me! Gah!

 

I agree if you are gaming...but I've got the XPS for that. For everything else 128mb 8600 GT should be fine...and in no way is 128mb video RAM worth 500 bucks. Its a fact either way ya slice it. They could at LEAST do a 7200 RPM drive in the 2500 dollar version.

No complaints though...I love the MBPRO.

 

When the MBP was originally released the price difference was actually "reasonable". At time of release the 2.4GHz T7700 cost $530 while the 2.2GHz T7500 cost $316 each in 1000 unit trays. So processor cost accounts for half the $500 already, so the other half is for the larger hard drive, double the VRAM, the top-of-the-line-ness-ness, and a nice profit margin. So in that sense it doesn't look as bad.

However, with the release of the 2.6GHz T7800 which costs $530, the 2.4GHz T7700 has fallen to $316, while the 2.2GHz T7500 has fallen to $241. So now Apple is really price gauging since they don't alter price points between product refreshes. The least they could have done is directly placed the 2.6GHz T7800 in the top model with the 2.4GHz moving to the bottom model, which was kind of what Intel was trying to do when they have new model cascades. I guess Apple defends it as increased profit margins due to a mature product.

 

Well if you want a slightly more powerful card and faster CPU, along with a few more GBs of space, there isn't much choice unless you do it yourself, which is a PITA with a MBP. Yeah it's a price gauge, but if you want a Mac with those particular specs, you have no choice, and if the extra $500 is no problem for you, then I don't see why not. Personally, if I didn't get a killer deal on my 17 inch and was stuck paying retail, I would have went for the 15 inch base model. However, if I was able to afford the standard retail price of a higher end model without a deal, then I would have got it anyway.

The main issue is that Apple does not license OS X for use on other computers, so they can really charge you whatever the hell they want. I think they just take advantage of that and charge a lot for upgrades and higher models, and yeah, it sucks

 

I agree that the 2499 is a gimmick version. There is no need to pay that much for the 15", 1999 is high enough as it is.